The Georgia Senate Special Tax Exemption Study Committee held its final meeting today, December 22, 2017 to make its recommendations. The Committee held four meetings in 2017 throughout the state. I testified at the Atlanta meeting in support of continuing the Georgia Research Credit as well as expanding the credit by adding an alternative simplified credit. Advanta’s testimony cited numerous studies explaining that states with research credits have increased job growth and investment over s…

Qualified small businesses can apply elect to apply up to $250,000 of Research and Experimentation Credits (Research Credit) against their payroll tax obligations. Previously, the credit was only available to offset income taxes and certain taxes on net gains. This provision is applicable to tax years starting on or after January 1, 2016 and should be of particular interest to companies conducting research and development activities during the start-up and early-growth stages.…

Virginia Strengthens its Research and Development Tax Credit Program Virginia legislators have made the state’s commitment to business clear by continuing to enhance its research and development (R&D) tax credit program. New legislation (S.B. 58), which recently passed both the house and senate unanimously and was signed by Governor Terry McAuliffe, demonstrates Virginia’s intent to attract and retain high tech businesses. The improvements include extending the sunset date of the…

How will the change in ASHRAE standards impact Section 179D? The Energy Policy Act of 2005 created a tax incentive that relates to the design and installation of energy efficient interior lighting, HVAC and hot water, and/or building envelope systems of commercial buildings. This incentive is for taxpayer building owners or designers of governmental buildings and ranges from $0.30 per square foot on up to $1.80 per square foot for…

Beginning with the 2014 tax year, Virginia legislators made several changes to the state’s research and development (R&D) credit program. Virginia rewards business for pursuing scientific or technical research that creates or improves products and processes. The bottom-line savings can significantly improve the return on R&D investments. In order to be eligible, the R&D must involve a systematic study or be directed towards discovering new information that is scientific or…

There is still time to prepare your application to file for the 2016 Florida R&D Credit. Florida has made changes that make the credit easier to obtain for eligible businesses. The annual credit limit has been increased to $23 million for the 2016 application period. Florida has also made the credit available on a pro-rated basis rather than a first-come, first-served basis. This year, businesses can apply between March 20…

We are excited about the expansive Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (PATH Act). Many provisions will have a positive impact on our clients. The Act has made the Research Tax Credit permanent and expands opportunities to utilize the credit for tax years beginning after December 31, 2015. Eligible small businesses (gross receipts of $50 million or less) may utilize the research tax credit against Alternative Minimum Tax...…

IRS RAISES TANGIBLE PROPERTY EXPENSE THRESHOLD TO $2,500 FOR TAXPAYERS WITHOUT AN APPLICABLE FINANCIAL STATEMENT The Treasury Department and the IRS have increased the de minimis safe harbor limit included in the 2013 tangible asset repair regulations (T.D. 9636) to $2,500 for taxpayers without an applicable financial statement (AFS). The increase comes after the IRS and Treasury formally requested comments in March of 2015 regarding a threshold increase for taxpayers…

As we near the end of 2015, we wanted to take a moment and thank our friends, clients and alliance partners for helping to make 2015 a wonderful year for Advanta Tax Advisors. We thank you for the confidence you placed in us. 2015 marked significant growth in our inaugural year of business as a specialty tax and consulting company. We look forward to serving our current clients again in…

Many small to medium sized companies don’t realize the value that can be created by utilizing the R&D tax credit. The following article was written by Advanta’s business development manager: The R&D Tax Credit Underclaimed & Misunderstood Contact Advanta today to find out if your business qualifies.…

Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle are making progress toward a major new business-friendly tax reduction on intellectual patent profits. On March 17, 2015, the United States Senate Committee on Finance held a hearing on Building a Competitive U.S. International Tax System. Witnesses offered testimony and answered senators’ questions about the possible benefits of the U. S. establishing a “patent box” regime to allow a discounted corporate tax…